Some of you might be old enough to remember where you were sixty five years ago this October.I and my bachelor squadron mates had been invited by an association of daughters of Naval officers { the “Brass Hatters”} to attend a dance at a club.My children have told the story that their parents met in a bar {the favored hunting ground of young men of that era}, which, in a technical sense, was true.It was the Officers Club of the U.S. Naval Destroyer Base, San Diego, California.
Most of the young officers there were Naval Air {“Brown Shoe” in Naval parlance”} and were discussing the outcome of the recent ORI.{An Operation Readiness Inspection was always carried out before a unit was sent to duty in a combat zone.}In this instance, a detachment of three of the Navy’s Heavy Bombers from my Squadron VC6 were scheduled for deployment.}
With a level of glee I had not previously observed from other squadron officers, a scurrilous rumor was being spread that one of our AJ2’s had bombed the wrong aircraft carrier.I felt this talk was a personal insult because, not only had I briefed the crew for the mission the previous week, a few hours earlier, that Sunday, I had helped the Bombardier, Ensign Whalen, prepare the documents that showed that our air crew had, in fact, hit the designated carrier.
As this rumor was being passed back and forth at the bar, I heard this angelic voice far to the right from where I was standing, ask the question, “How can you bomb your own aircraft carrier?”I immediately went to the aid of this intelligent but misinformed, young, attractive lady, and began a conversation that has lasted this past 65 years.During this conversation, ‘Dolly Scruggs’ became Louise Dynes the following May.
Louise Mitchell Scruggs {until our marriage, known as Dolly-her mother’s name was also Louise} was passionate about her family, her friends, her students, touring the world, painting the people and scenes she shared with her family and friends of these journeys and collecting mementos of these experiences.
Louise’s travels began at age three when her father, Lt. Richard Martin Scruggs, USN, was assigned to our Asiatic Fleet as Engineering Officer aboard the Fleet’s Oiler, USS Pecos {sunk by the Japanese in 1942}.Louise began her schooling learning how to write Chinese at the direction of her Chinese “alma” in the sandy beaches of Chee-foo, China.She also participated in classes aboard Navy ships and Punaho School in Manilla, Philippines.
Louise returned stateside when her father was reassigned to duties related to our nations preparation for war.Her family continued to follow, where possible, her fathers duty assignments.From 1937 to her graduation from UC Berkeley in 1953, Louise matriculated in schools in Honolulu, Hawaii; San Juan, Puerto Rico; Madison, Florida; Moorestown, New Jersey; Washington, DC; and Beverly Hills, California.
Following her graduate work at UCLA, Louise began her career as a fifth grade teacher in the San Diego School district, later in Seattle, and finally in Newark, Delaware.
After my discharge from Naval duties, we left Coronado, California in August 1958 and drove to Seattle, Washington,via Tallahassee and Madison, Florida; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and the Tetons.Louise taught fifth grade students until Scott Budd Chapman came along in 1960, followed a year later by Christina Louise.
We left Seattle in August, 1962, and journeyed to Chapel Hill, North Carolina, via Beverly Hills, California.After a year, we relocated to Tallahassee, Florida, near our families until 1967, when we resettled in Newark, Delaware.We joined Saint Thomas Parish.
While rearing our children {Richard Mitchell Grant arrived in 1964 - a sixth generation Californian} Louise did not teach fifth grade students, she, instead, joined the John R. Downes PTA, and served a term as president.She also joined the League of Women Voters, the DAR, the Occidentals, and the Austrian American Society.
After our children began their college educations, Louise sold real estate for Lyons Realty.She enrolled in the Art Department at the University of Delaware.She restarted her career as an artist and joined the Delaware Council of theArts, participating in local activities, including art competitions and shows.She was once asked to remove one of her paintings in one of her exhibitions as a customers felt her painting of a classic statue was too risqué.That painting is treasured by all of her friends.She continued to paint as she traveled.Part of her legacy is the many paintings she executed along the way, one of which still hangs in the lobby of Le Petit Coq au Champs in Normandy.
After rearing her children into their teenage years, she took the entire crew on a three month pilgrimage of Europe aboard a VW camper van.The family and the van arrived in Naples, Italy, in March, 1976, aboard the Leonardo de Vince and proceeded South to Syracuse, Italy, and after a suitable period [It was snowing in Rome] proceeded North to London, via Palermo, Rome, Florence, Venice, Innsbruck, Munich, the Roman Road “Romanish Strasse”, and Paris.We returned by air in time to celebrated our nations 200th birthday in July on the Washington Mall.
Between that expedition and our final stay in Barcelona in 2017, Louise traveled to Europe (primarily Austria, Germany, France, and Italy)eleven times.In 1983 We lived in Augsburg, Germany where I taught and conducted research at the University.Over the years, we did take separate trips throughout the Baltic and Mediterranean Seas, including several stays in St. Petersburg, Istanbul, and several months in Venice.
Louise stayed with friends in New Dehli for several months.Louise also toured the Norwegian Fjords three times, on the Coronia, on the Sun Sun Viking, and on the QE2 above the Arctic Circle.
Louise has memorialized these visits to her friends and the places she grew to love through her art.She will be sorely missed by her family and the many friends she made on her path.
